Accordingly, [Jaehaerys] set out plans for a series of drains and sewers, to carry the city's offal and nightsoil under the streets to the river.
Septon Barth drew the king's attention to an even more urgent problem: King's Landing's drinking water was fit only for horses and swine, in the opinion of many. The river water was muddy, and the king's new sewers would soon make it worse; the waters of Blackwater Bay were brackish at the best of times, and salty at the worst. Whilst the king and his court and the city's highborn drank ale and mead and wine, these foul waters were oft the only choice for the poor. To address the problem, Barth proposed sinking wells, [...] A series of glazed clay pipes and tunnels would carry the fresh water into the city, where it would be stored in four huge cisterns and made available to the smallfolk [...]
Barth's scheme was costly, beyond a doubt, and Rego Draz and King Jaehaerys balked at the expense...until Queen Alysanne served each of them a tankard of river water at the next council meeting, and dared them to drink it. The water went undrunk, but the wells and pipes were soon approved. (Jaehaerys and AlysanneâTheir Triumphs and Tragedies, Fire and Blood)
This reminds you of Sansa?
Alysanne Targaryen, the youngest child of King Aenys and Queen Alyssa, had been little known amongst the lords and ladies of the realm before then. Her childhood had been spent in the shadow of her brothers and her elder sister, Rhaena, and when she was spoken of at all it was as âthe little maidâ and âthe other daughter.â She was little, this was true; slim and slight of frame, Alysanne was oft described as pretty but seldom as beautiful, though she was born of a house renowned for beauty. Her eyes were blue rather than purple, her hair a mass of honey-colored curls. No man ever questioned her wits. (The Year of the Three Bridesâ49 AC, Fire and Blood)
The Targaryens had been marrying brother to sister for centuries, of course, and Jaehaerys and Alysanne had grown up expecting to wed, just as their elder siblings Aegon and Rhaena had. Moreover, Alysanne was only two years younger than her brother, and the two children had always been close and strong in their affection and regard for one another. (The Year of the Three Bridesâ49 AC, Fire and Blood)
Alysanne was stubborn and persistent and she had a way of bringing the king around to her own point of view, no matter how far apart they had been at the start. (The Long ReignâJaehaerys and Alysanne: Policy, Progeny, and Pain, Fire and Blood)
Manderly also staged a small tourney in the queenâs honor, to show the prowess of his knights. One of the fighters (though no knight) was revealed to be a woman, a wildling girl who had been captured by rangers north of the Wall and given to one of Lord Manderlyâs household knights to foster. Delighted by the girlâs daring, Alysanne summoned her own sworn shield, Jonquil Darke, and the wildling and the Scarlet Shadow dueled spear against sword whilst the northmen roared in approval. (Jaehaerys and AlysanneâTheir Triumphs and Tragedies, Fire and Blood)
âA ruler needs a good head and a true heart,â she famously told the king. âA cock is not essential. If Your Grace truly believes that women lack the wit to rule, plainly you have no further need of me.â And thus Queen Alysanne departed Kingâs Landing and flew to Dragonstone on her dragon Silverwing. She and King Jaehaerys remained apart for two years, the period of estrangement recorded in the histories as the Second Quarrel. (Heirs of the DragonâA Question of Succession, Fire and Blood)
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